Homeland Security Presidential Directive (HSPD-5), Management of Domestic Incidents, requires all Federal departments and agencies to adopt the National Incident Management System (NIMS) and to use it in domestic incident management. The NIMS provides a consistent nationwide approach for Federal, State, territorial, tribal, and local governments to work effectively and efficiently together to prepare for, prevent, respond to, and recover from domestic incidents, regardless of cause, size, or complexity. On March 1, 2004, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued the NIMS to provide a comprehensive national approach to incident management, applicable to all jurisdictional levels and across functional disciplines.
The NIMS document may be downloaded from the Department of Homeland Security web site at: http://www.dhs.gov/ or http://www.fema.gov/nims.
NIMS Training
NIMS training is currently available as a FEMA Independent Study Course (IS-700). To enroll in this course, go to: http://training.fema.gov/EMIWeb/IS.
The Governor00 Division of Emergency Management offers a NIMS-ICS course to state and local emergency management personnel and other interested students as part of its training curriculum. See the GDEM Training Calendars, which are posted on this web site: http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/dem, for further information.
NIMS Guidance Available OnlineThe Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created a centralized Internet portal to help emergency managers and first responders navigate, understand, and work with the National Incident Management System (NIMS). The NIMS Web page at http://www.fema.gov/nims/ will offer emergency managers a complete listing of NIMS requirements, tools and resources, and general information about the incident management system. As NIMS implementation moves forward, issues such as the assessment process, compliance criteria, NIMS related training, and implementation timelines will also be available. Questions or concerns about NIMS are welcome and should be sent to nims-integration-center@dhs.gov.
New On-Line Independent Study Course: IS-800, The National Response Plan (NRP)A new independent study course is available for the National Response Plan (NRP). This course introduces emergency management practitioners to the NRP, including the concept of operations upon which the plan is built, the roles and responsibilities of key players, and the organizational structures used to manage response resources. The NRP provides a framework to ensure all response elements work together whenever our Nation and residents are threatened. The NRP specifies how the resources of the Federal government will work in concert with State, local, tribal governments, and the private sector to respond to Incidents of National Significance. The NRP is predicated on the National Incident Management System (NIMS) and this course complements EMI IS-700, National Incident Management System. The NRP and NIMS provide a nationwide template for working together to prevent or respond to threats and incidents regardless of cause, size, or complexity. The course is Federal, state, local, and private sector emergency management and response professionals.
New Exercise Evaluation and Reporting RequirementsThe US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Office of Domestic Preparedness (ODP, is implementing the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program (HSEEP) to enhance and assess terrorism prevention, response, and recovery capabilities at the Federal, State, and local levels. HSEEP is a threat- and performance-based exercise program that provides doctrine and policy for planning, conducting, and evaluating exercises.
Starting May 1, 2005, GDEM will no longer accept FEMA 95-44 forms to report exercises. Instead, an After Action Report (AAR) and Improvement Plan (IP) that meets the requirements of HSEEP must be forwarded to GDEM within 45 days after the exercise is completed.
The HSEEP includes a series of four reference manuals to assist state and local jurisdictions establish exercise programs and design, conduct, and evaluate exercises. In addition, they provide information on the form for the AAR and IP. The format can be found in Volume II on page 16 of the printed version. The HSEEP can be accessed at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/odp/exercises.htm#hseep
GDEM Course Enrollment Notification ProcessUpon receipt of a Training Application, the DEM Training & Exercise Unit will notify students of their status by post card. The post card will indicate either that a student has been enrolled in the class they requested or that they have been placed on a waiting list for the class.
The Training & Exercise Unit will send students that have been enrolled in classes an e-mail or letter with specific information about the class approximately 30 days prior to the class start date. This e-mail or letter will indicate the location of the class and the class start time, provide information on the hotel/motel at which student lodging rates have been arranged, indicate any materials that students should bring to class, and provide other pertinent information relating to the class.
FEMA Professional Development Services (PDS) ChangesThe PDS courses listed below are now available as on-line self-paced Independent Study courses. The Governor00 Division of Emergency Management does not offer the following courses except during conferences or similar events.
Leadership and Influence IS-240Independent Study Course
FEMA Internet class Decision Making and Problem Solving, IS-241
Independent Study Course
FEMA Internet class Effective Communication, IS-242
Independent Study Course
FEMA Internet class Developing and Managing Volunteers, IS-244
Independent Study Course
FEMA Internet class
Another course in the PDS, Principles of Emergency Management (G230), is also available as an online course (IS-230); some GDEM Regional Liaison Officers may present this course if requested.
Exercise Design (G120) is also available as IS-139; GDEM will continue to offer the course as part of a combined Exercise Design and Evaluation Course. The State of Texas00 version of the Emergency Planning Course is required to meet your EMPG requirement for planning.
Emergency Planning (G235) is also available as IS-235; GDEM will continue to offer a version of this course tailored for the State of Texas. The State of Texas00 version of the Emergency Planning Course is required to meet your EMPG requirement for planning.
To obtain a PDS Certificate of Completion, only courses for which a student has taken and passed an end-of-course test will count toward fulfillment of PDS requirements.
